Article Credit - Raisha Hassan Chowdhury

Land boundary of Bangladesh

Ø Bangladesh covers an area of 147,570 sq km. It extends from 20'34N to 26'38N latitude and from 88'01E to 92'41E longitude.

Ø The Indian States of West Bengal , Assam, Meghalaya and Tripura border Bangladesh in the west, north and east respectively.

Ø Myanmar forms the southern part of the eastern frontier.

Ø The total length of the land border is about 4,246 km, of which 93.9% is shared with India and about 6.1% with Myanmar.

Ø The country is bounded in the south by Bay of Bengal.

Fig: Boundary of Bangladesh

National Flag of Bangladesh

Ø Like all other nations Bangladesh also follows approved rules as regards size, design, color of the national flag and manner of hoisting the flag.

Ø According to flag rules (1972), the National Flag will be in bottle green and rectangular in size in the proportion of 10:6, with a red circle in the middle. The red circle will have a radius of one-fifth of the length of the flag.

Ø Its center will be placed on the intersecting point of the perpendicular drawn from the nine-twentieth part of the length of the flag, and the horizontal line drawn through the middle of its width.

Ø The green base of the flag will be of Procion Brilliant Green H-2RS 50 parts per 1000. The red circular part will be of Procion Brilliant Orange H-2RS 60 parts per 1000.

Ø Initially the flag had the map of Bangladesh in the centre, which was withdrawn later. The Mujibnagar Government adopted the pattern of the flag unfurled by the student leaders in the Dhaka University on 2 March 1971.

Ø The national flag was officially adopted on 17 January 1972 which was designed by Quamrul Hassan

Fig: Bangladesh National Flag Evolution

National Emblem of Bangladesh

Ø National Emblem is a symbol that represents the People's Republic of Bangladesh.

Ø It is the national flower shapla (Nymphaea pubescens) resting on water, having on each side an ear of paddy and being surmounted by three connected leaves of jute with two stars on each side of the leaves.

Ø Bangladesh landscape and economy are characterized by water, paddy and jute.

Ø The aquatic blooming flower shapla embedded on these three things symbolises promise, aesthetics and elegance. The stars symbolise aims and ambition of the nation.

Fig: National Emblem of Bangladesh

National language of Bangladesh

Ø Bengali (Bangla) is the national language of Bangladesh, belongs to the Indo-Aryan group of languages and is related to Sanskrit.

Ø Bangladesh is the only country who had fought for her mother tongue in 1952.

Ø 98% people of Bangladesh speak in Bengali

Fig: Symbols of Bangla Language

National Anthem of Bangladesh

Ø National Anthem official song of the People's Republic of Bangladesh. Composed by rabindranath tagore in Bangla in 1906, the song 'Amar Sonar Bangla' became popular during the swadeshi movement in the first two decades of the 20th century.

Ø The Constitution of Bangladesh (Article 4.1) adopted the song as the national anthem of the People's Republic of Bangladesh.

Ø The first ten lines of the song have been specified to make the anthem for vocal music and the first four lines for instrumental music.

National Flower of Bangladesh

Ø The Sada shapla or white waterlily is the national flower of Bangladesh.

Ø Selected as the national flower after liberation war by the government.

Ø Symbol of purity of soul and unity.

Ø Located in the center of the Emblem of Bangladesh.

Ø Also the national flower of Srilanka.

Ø Blooms all around the year.

Ø Found in every part of Bangladesh.

Fig: National Flower of Bangladesh

National Fish of Bangladesh

Ø Ilish or Hilsa is the national fish of Bangladesh.

Ø The scientific name of this fish is Hilsa Ilisha not Tenualosa ilisha.

Ø Body length may reach up to 60 cm, but commonly found specimens measure 35 to 40 cm.

Ø Its natural habitat is the estuaries or the seas. But for breeding purposes it has to come to the upstream or rivers.

Ø At present the main hilsa landing centres are Chandpur, Chittagong and Barisal

Ø A hilsa dish is the traditional way to celebrate the Bangladeshi new-year and other festivals.

National fruit of Bangladesh

Ø The Jackfruit is the national fruit of Bangladesh.

Ø It is one of the largest fruits to grow on trees in the world.

Ø Jackfruit is found all over in Bangladesh; but mainly in the month of Jaishtha and Ashar.

Ø The leaves of Jackfruit trees are good food for cow and goat.

Ø Good quality furniture can be made from jackfruit trees.

Ø Also the national fruit of Indonesia.

Fig: National Fruit of Bangladesh

National bird of Bangladesh

Ø Doyel or magpie robin is the national bird of Bangladesh.

Ø Scientific name is Copsychus saularis

Ø The Magpie Robin or the Doyel can grow up to around nineteen centimeters from head to tail.

Ø Mostly found in Bangladesh into the rural areas, especially in quieter regions.

Ø They are well-known for their melodious call and popular as cage birds.

Ø The Magpie Robin is a widely used national symbol in Bangladesh, appearing on their currency notes, and a landmark in the Dhaka city is named as the Doyel Chatwar or Doyel Square.

National Animal of Bangladesh

Ø Royal Bengal Tiger is the official National animal of Bangladesh.

Ø Panthera tigris tigris is the scientific name of the Royal Bengal Tiger.

Ø The Bengal tigers in the Sundarbans in India and Bangladesh are the only tigers in the world, which inhabit in mangrove forests.

Ø Symbols of royalty, fearlessness and wrath

Ø Members of the East Bengal Regiment of the Bangladesh Army are nicknameed 'Bengal Tigers'; the regiment's logo is a tiger face and the Bangladesh Cricket Board,s logo features a royal Bengal tiger.

Ø Also the national animal of India and Myanmar

National game of Bangladesh

Ø The Ha-Du-Du (Kabadi) is the National game of Bangladesh

Ø As the National Game of Bangladesh, Kabadi is enjoyed by thousands of players, and even more spectators, around the country.

Ø Played by two competing teams, Kabadi is an outdoor activity played on a rectangular court of 12.5 by 10 meters in size, which is divided in two by a white line. Although each team consists of twelve players, only seven members of each team will be on the court at one time. The other team members remain on the sidelines as extras.

Ø To monitor the game there are two linesmen, a timekeeper, a referee, a scorer and two umpires. The decision as to who starts the game is decided by tossing a coin and it is played in 20-minute sessions.

Fig: Playing Kabadi in Rural Area

National park of Bangladesh

Ø Bhawal National Park (Bengali: ভাওয়াল জাতীয় উদ্যান) is a nature reserve and the national park of Bangladesh.

Ø Bhawal National Park was established and maintained as a National Park in 1974; it was officially declared in 1982 under the Wildlife Act of 1974. By origin, it was the forest of Madhupur under the rule of Bhawal Estate. It is located in Gazipur, Dhaka Division of Bangladesh, approximately 40 km north of Dhaka city, only 20 km drive from Gazipur and 20 km from Kapasia. The core area of the park covers 940 hectares but extends to 5,022 ha of surrounding forest. Its purpose is to protect important habitats as well as to provide opportunities for recreation.

Ø The most common flora is the unique coppice sal forest. The area was noted for peacocks, tiger, leopard, black panther, elephant, clouded leopard and sambar deer. However much of the wildlife had disappeared and only a few species remain.

National forest of Bangladesh

Ø Shundarbans is the national forest of Bangladesh.

Ø The Sundarbans is a mangrove area in the delta formed by the confluence of the Ganges, Brahmaputra and Megna Rivers in the Bay of Bengal.

Ø The Sundarbans mangrove forest covers an area of about 10,000 km² (3,900 sq mi)

Ø Four protected areas in the Sundarbans are enlisted as UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

National river of Bangladesh

Ø The Jamuna River is the National river of Bangladesh.It is the main distributary channel of the Brahmaputra River as it flows from India to Bangladesh.

Ø The Jamuna flows south and joins the Padma River (Pôdda), near Goalundo Ghat, before meeting the Meghna River near Chandpur.

Ø It then flows into the Bay of Bengal as the Meghna River. It is one of the most beautiful and important rivers of Bangladesh.

Fig: The Jamuna River

National poet of Bangladesh

Ø Kazi Nazrul Islam is the national poet of Bangladesh

Ø Nazrul known as the ‘Rebel’ poet in Bengali literature and the ‘Bulbul’ or Nightingale of Bengali music.

Ø Kazi Nazrul Islam was born on May 24, 1899 in Churulia village, Bardhawan in West Bengal, India.

Ø Nazrul’s nickname was “Dukhu Mia”.

Ø His mother was Zaheda Khatun and his father Kazi Fakir Ahmed was the Imaam of the local village mosque

Ø His father’s premature death forced him, at the age of 10, to become the Muazzin (a caller for prayer) of the local mosque.

Ø Nazrul joined a folk-opera group inspired by his uncle Bazle Karim

Ø Although Nazrul had to change schools two or three times, he managed to continue up to class X.

Ø In 1917 he joined the Indian Army.

Ø National March of Bangladesh is written and tuned by Nazrul.

Notable works

Notuner Gaan

Bidrohi

Pralayollas

Dhumketu

Agniveena

Bandhan Hara

Nazrul Geeti

Notable awards

Padma Bhushan

Ekushey Padak

Independence Day Award

Ø National March is written and tuned by Nazrul

Ø Nazrul and his family were brought to independent Bangladesh on 24 May 1972.

Ø The poet died on 29August 1976.

Ø Kazi Nazrul Islam was buried with state honour on Dhaka University campus, on the northern side of Dhaka University mosque.

Fig: National Poet (Kazi Nazrul Islam)

National Museum of Bangladesh

Ø Bangladesh National Museum (BNM), officially known as Bangladesh Jatiya Jadughar, owes its origin and growth to the Dhaka museum.

Ø Bangladesh National Museum was originally established on 20 March 1913 as Dhaka museum and after it was made the national museum of Bangladesh on 17 November 1983.

Ø The museum is located at Shahbag in Dhaka city occupying 8.63 acres land, with a magnificent building, containing 44 galleries, a large library, three auditoriums and two exhibition halls.

Ø There are four other branch museums under the control of Bangladesh National Museum- these are ahsan manzil Museum (Dhaka), Osmani Museum (Sylhet), Zia Smriti Museum (Chittagong) and Shilpacharya Zainul Abedin Sangrahashala (Mymensingh).

National Monuments and Memorials of Bangladesh

SHAHEED MINAR

Ø The Shaheed minar is a national monument.

Ø established to commemorate those killed during the Bengali Language Movement demonstrations of 1952 in then East Pakistan.

Ø Shaheed Minar is situated near Dhaka Medical College Hospital and in the Dhaka University area. It is adjacent to the Mathematics department of Dhaka University.

Ø The first Shaheed Minar was built immediately after the events of 21–22 February 1952 designed by Dr. Sayeed Haider and after 3 days demolished by Pakistani army .

Ø The foundation stone of the Shaheed Minar was laid for the second time on 21 February 1956 by Abu Hossain Sarkar, the then Chief Minister of East Pakistan, along with Maulana ABDUL HAMID KHAN BASHANI and Hasina Begum, mother of Abul Barkat, the language martyr.

Ø During the war of liberation in 1971, the Pakistani army again demolished the Minar and placed a signboard there with the word 'Mosque' written on it.

Ø Present dimensions of Shaheed minar designed by Hamidur Rahman.

Ø The enormous design includes a half-circular arrangement of columns to symbolise the mother, with her fallen sons, standing on the monument's central dais, and the red sun shining behind.

Ø The Shaheed Minar, with all its architectural and sculptural imperfections, still stands as a symbol of the linguistic and nationalistic struggle of Bangladeshis.

Fig: Shaheed Minar

NATIONAL MARTYR’S MEMORIAL

Ø National Martyrs’ Memorial situated at Savar, about 35 km north-west of Dhaka.

Ø Symbolises the valour and sacrifice of the martyrs who sacrificed their lives for the liberation of Bangladesh.

Ø Designed by architect Moinul Hossain.

Ø Inaugurated at 16 December, 1982.

Ø Consisting of seven triangular monuments and spread over 108 acre of land and the top of this monument is 150ft high.

Ø 7 isosceles triangular pyramids remind seven Incidents relating to Bangladeshi Liberations.

Martyred Intellectuals Memorial

built in memory of the martyred intellectuals of Bangladesh Liberation War.
The memorial, located at Rayerbazar, Mohammadpur Thana in Dhaka.
designed by architect Farid U Ahmed and Jami Al Shafi.
Construction started on 1996 and finished on 1999.
The main element of the monument is approximately 17.7 m high, 0.9 m thick and 115.8 m long curved brick wall, representing the original brickfield of Rayer Bazar where the dead bodies were found.

SWADHINATA STAMBHA

Ø Swadhinata Stambha or Independence Monument is a national monument in Bangladesh to commemorate the historical events that took place in the Suhrawardy Udyan regarding the Liberation War of Bangladesh.

Ø Government of Bangladesh took the initiative to build the monument in 1996.

Ø The construction began in 1999 and completed in 2013.

Ø Kashef Mahboob Chowdhury and Marina Tabassum designed the project.

Ø The main attraction of the project is a 50-meter high tower composed of stacked glass panels.

National library of Bangladesh

Ø The National Library of Bangladesh was established under a special order of the government soon after the liberation of the country. However, the National Library practically started functioning from 1973.

Ø At the beginning, the National Library was housed in a rented building in Dhaka at 103 Elephant Road, then at 106 Central Road (also rented) and finally in 1985 it was moved to its own building constructed by the Government at Agargaon, Sher-e-Banglanagar, Dhaka.

Ø The National Library of Bangladesh has several sections namely the Bibliography Section, Library Section, Binding Section, Processing Section, Computer Section and Microfilm Section.

Ø The National Library has a collection of some 400,000 books including rare books and manuscripts and about 100,000 copies of learned journals collected from various sources.

National religion of Bangladesh

Ø The constitution designates Islam as the state religion but upholds the principle of secularism.

Ø It prohibits religious discrimination and provides for equality for all religions.

National mosque of Bangladesh

Ø Baitul Mukarram, also spelled as Baytul Mukarrom (Arabic: بيت المكرّم‎; Bengali: বায়তুল মোকাররম; The Holy House) is the National Mosque of Bangladesh. Located at the center of Dhaka, capital of Bangladesh, the mosque was completed in 1968.

Ø The mosque complex was designed by architect, Abdulhusein M.Thariani In 1959.

National stadium of Bangladesh

Bangabandhu National Stadium (Bengali: বঙ্গবন্ধু জাতীয় স্টেডিয়াম), also known as Dhaka Stadium, and formerly known as Dacca Stadium, is the national stadium and a multipurpose sports arena in Dhaka, Bangladesh.

Ø It is located in the Motijheel area in the heart of the city. The stadium has been renovated several times, most recently for the opening ceremony of the 2011 Cricket World Cup.

Ø It had a capacity close to 55,000 before the most recent renovation, but with a new capacity of 36,000 it is still the largest stadium in Bangladesh.

National Affairs of Bangladesh